WHAT MANNER OF PERSONS OUGHT WE TO BE!

Posted by Pastor Greg Allen on July 17, 2019 under AM Bible Study |

AM Bible Study Group: July 17, 2019 from 2 Peter 3:10-13

Theme: God’s plan for this created universe should motivate us to live as His holy people.

(All Scripture is taken from The New King James Version, unless otherwise indicated).

We come to a remarkable passage. It tells us something about God’s future plan for this created universe that we would only have known by the Creator Himself revealing it to us in His word.

In 2 Peter 3, the apostle was telling his readers about the promise of the coming ‘day of the Lord’ (vv. 1-9). He mentioned that people scoff at the idea that the Lord Jesus will return to judge this earth; but that God’s great works in the past gives us ample reason for believing He will keep his promise. And then, he gives us this declaration through the revelation of the Holy Spirit:

But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up. Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved, being on fire, and the elements will melt with fervent heat? Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells (2 Peter 3:10-13).

This present created order has an end. It will be remade into a new heavens and a new earth. And this is not meant to be taken by us as a merely theoretical matter. Instead, it is intended to impact our everyday practical living. God’s future plan for this created universe should motivate us to live as His holy people in the present.

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Most people today believe that the world has always been pretty much as it is now; and they live as if the way that things are now is how they will always be. They live as if the Lord Jesus will never come again, and as if there will be no day of judgment, and as if this present order of things will never come to an end. But as Christians, we must not live that way. Peter tells us that …

1. GOD HAS SCHEDULED THIS CREATED ORDER FOR DESTRUCTION (vv. 10, 12b).

Peter tells us in verse 10, “But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up.” He tells us in the latter half of verse 12 that “the heavens will be dissolved, being on fire, and the elements will melt with fervent heat …”

When Peter speaks of the ‘day of the Lord’, he is not talking about a 24-hour day. Rather, he is describing a period in God’s redemptive plan for the ages. It is the final stage of this created order. And this final period comes upon the world suddenly—unexpectedly—like a thief in the night. It begins with the return of Jesus to reign on earth for 1,000 years; and it culminates in the destruction of this present order. As far as the people of this world might be concerned, that sounds like a horrible thing to believe. But as Jesus’ followers, we can’t even begin to live on this earth as He wants us to unless we see everything in this created universe as destined to pass away—with a new heaven and earth taking its place.

Peter tells us, first of all, that “the heavens will pass away with a great noise”. Peter isn’t speaking here of “heaven” in the singular (which is the glorious abode of God), but rather of “the heavens” in the plural. He is speaking of the very sky above us, and the very reaches of space around us—and of all the created things that they contain. One of the advantages we have of living in our time has been the invention of the Hubble Telescope. Because it orbits above earth’s atmosphere, it has given astronomers a clearer picture of the universe than would have ever been possible before. The images it has sent back to earth are beyond description. No one could have ever thought that the reaches of space were so vast, and so beautiful, and so full as they are. And yet, as marvelous and as vast as it all is, it is only a temporary showcase of God’s creative glory. It is not meant to last forever. Because of the coming of “the day of God”, these very heavens—that we are only just now beginning to learn about—will “dissolve” or “be destroyed”.

Second, Peter tells us that “the elements will melt with fervent heat”. The word that Peter uses for “elements” means the basic fundamental principles of a thing. And though some translations of the Bible render this word “heavenly bodies”, it seems that, in this context, it refers to the foundational elements of the created universe. God promises that the most basic building blocks of the material universe will, one day, fly apart from one another; and that the elements will burn up “with fervent heat” that is caused by the motion of this separation. In verse twelve, we’re told that they will literally “melt” or “dissolve” or “liquefy”. The molecular structure that these basic elements had maintained in this created order will break apart and be gone. It will be as if all of creation had been a giant, cosmic “Etch-a-Sketch” drawing; and at the time of His choosing, God will turn it all upside-down and shake its present form away.

Third, Peter even says that “both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up”. In some translations, it has it that the earth and its works will be “laid bare” (as in the NIV), or “exposed” (as in the ESV). This difference reflects the fact that, in some ancient manuscripts, a different Greek word is being used. And if the word for ‘laid bare” is the correct one, then this would speak of the fact that, in that great day of the Lord, all things that are hidden in the works of men will be fully revealed. It would be the ultimate fulfillment of Hebrews 4:13; where it says,

And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account (Hebrews 4:13).

But if the word that is translated “burned up” is the correct one, then this is saying something more like what it says in 1 Corinthians 3:11-15;

For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if anyone builds on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, each one’s work will become clear; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one’s work, of what sort it is. If anyone’s work which he has built on it endures, he will receive a reward. If anyone’s work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire (1 Corinthians 3:11-15).

And so, taken all together, Peter is telling us that when the day of the Lord will suddenly come and be fully realized, the universe as it now is will come to an end. It will come unexpectedly—just when people will have thought that they have taken control of and structured this present world in just the very way that they want it. As Paul writes in 1 Thessalonians 5:2-3;

For you yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so comes as a thief in the night. For when they say, “Peace and safety!” then sudden destruction comes upon them, as labor pains upon a pregnant woman. And they shall not escape (1 Thessalonians 5:2-3).

Now; all of this would indeed sound very gloomy if it weren’t for another important thing that Peter tells us. In verse 13, he wrote, “Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.” This teaches us that …

2. A NEW HEAVENS AND A NEW EARTH WILL REPLACE THE OLD (v. 13).

Will it be “new” in the sense of something completely unconnected to the old? Will God completely wipe away all traces of the first creation and make a new one ‘from scratch’—utterly unconnected to the old creation? Some have suggested that, because of the fall of Adam in sin, the whole of the created order has been spoiled and contaminated; and that it must now be done away with completely. But this would be to admit that the devil succeeded in taking that which, at the very beginning, God declared to be “very good” (Genesis 1:31) and completely spoiling it. It would mean that the devil had succeeded in thwarting God’s plan in some way.

Instead, a better way to see this can be illustrated from our Lord Jesus Himself. When He died on the cross, He died in the same body that had been made from this material universe. And when He rose in glory, He rose in the very same body in which He had lived—even bearing the prints of the nails in His hands (John 20:25-27). His body was the same one—but glorified. He sits now at the Father’s right hand in the same body that was made from the material substance of this present created order; and it will be in that same body that our Lord will return to this earth on “the day of the Lord”—a body composed of the same material substance taken from this created order of things but that is in a glorified, eternally renewed form. In the same way, we are to look for new heavens and a new earth—not “new” in the sense of having no connection to the old whatsoever, but “new” in the sense of its material substance being gloriously renewed.

We could also see a good analogy of this in our own promised resurrection in Christ. We’re told

The body is sown in corruption, it is raised in incorruption. It is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness, it is raised in power. It is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body (1 Corinthians 15:42-44).

And in the same sense, the new creation will have real, material continuity with the old one—but as a created order that is “new” in glorious renewal. (There are two words used in the New Testament for “new”: the word kainos means ‘new in quality’ and the word neos means ‘new in time’. The word Peter uses is kainos—which speaks of the ‘new heavens’ and the ‘new earth’ as being ‘new’ in quality. See Trench, Synonyms of the New Testament, pp. 205-6)

This present created order ‘yearns’ in this hope even now (Romans 8:19-22). And just think of what a greater glory this brings to our mighty Creator! He will not merely scrap the old created order and make a completely new creation. Instead, He takes that which mankind, under the influence of the devil, had ruined, and “renews” it into a gloriously renewed created order. He doesn’t merely make “new things”; but rather, as it says in Revelation 21:5, makes “all things new” (kainos). As God Himself promises in Isaiah 65:17; “For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth; and the former shall not be remembered or come to mind.” The new will be so glorious that the old form of things will not even come to remembrance. What victory!

And most wonderful of all, Peter tells us in verse 13 that this will be a new heavens and a new earth “in which righteousness dwells”. Righteousness does not characterize this present created order. Rather, it is characterized by the damage our sin has brought upon it, and the consequence of death that permeates it. But consider the glorious description we’re given—on the last few pages of the Bible—of our life in this wonderful “new” heavens and “new” earth:

Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also, there was no more sea. Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.” Then He who sat on the throne said, “Behold, I make all things new.” And He said to me, “Write, for these words are true and faithful” (Revelation 21:1-5).

That’s our prospect in Christ. This current order of things is our home only for a season. We shouldn’t mistreat this created order or despise it; because our wonderful Father made it all “very good”. And what’s more, the renewal of this present created order will be our glorious inheritance in the future.

But though we live for a time in this present created order of things, we are to live in it—right now—with a perspective that is radically different from that of the unbelieving people of this world. And that leads us to the main proposition of this passage—that …

3. WE SHOULD LIVE HOLY LIVES NOW IN THE LIGHT OF THIS PROMISE (v. 11-12a).

As Peter says, “Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening the coming day of God …?” As he goes on to write;

Therefore, beloved, looking forward to these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, without spot and blameless; and consider that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation–as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given to him, has written to you, as also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which untaught and unstable people twist to their own destruction, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures. You, therefore, beloved, since you know this beforehand, beware lest you also fall from your own steadfastness, being led away with the error of the wicked; but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory both now and forever. Amen (2 Peter3:14-18).

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Peter writes that we are to be “looking for and hastening the coming day of God”. How do we do that? How do we so look and so live that the day of the Lord comes sooner? Perhaps this is best understood by what Peter said in Jerusalem, when he preached to his Jewish kinsmen in Acts 3;

“But those things which God foretold by the mouth of all His prophets, that the Christ would suffer, He has thus fulfilled. Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and that He may send Jesus Christ, who was preached to you before, whom heaven must receive until the times of restoration of all things, which God has spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began” (Acts 3:18-21).

Peter wrote this letter to Jewish believers. The more we—as followers of Jesus—live faithfully for Him, and the more we spread the gospel of Jesus which is “for the Jew first and also for the Greek” (Romans 1:16), the more we work to hasten the day of our Lord’s return and the glorious renewal of all things.

May Peter’s closing exhortation sink deeply into our hearts. And may it transform the way we live. How we live for Christ on this earth today is determined—to some degree—by whether or not our hearts are captivated by the prospect of new heavens and a new earth yet to come!

EA